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I have hydrocephalus, I had a ETV done a year ago. I only

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I have hydrocephalus, I had a ETV done a year ago. I only felt well for a few months. Now I believe that the whole has closed and the hydro is back. Right after I started feeling bad again my eyes swell up causing baggy eyes. I have been tested for cushings which was negative. The eyes get really baggy by days end and better in the morning. Could hydrocephalus cause the eyes to swell up. I hope soon that they shunt me again.

Hi. I'm Dr. Rick and I have two decades of ophthalmology experience. I'm online and happy to answer your question today.

Hydrocephalus, or a plugged shunt, would not cause your eyes to swell.

That being said, if you feel your shunt may be plugged up you need to contact your neurosurgeon and get in for an evaluation ASAP.

Does this make sense to you?

I hope this information was helpful for you. But I do work for tips so I want to make sure you are happy with me before rating me. If you have another question on this or a related issue feel free to fire away. You may also receive an email survey after our chat, if you don’t feel that I have earned a “10” rating in all areas, please let me know what I can do to meet your expectations.

Thank you for the picture. That really helps. I can tell you with 110% confidence that the swelling you are experiencing is not from a blocked shunt.

From the picture you uploaded it looks like you have orbital fat prolapse. This is a benign condition and not a sign of anything serious.

The most common cause of dark circles under the eyes is breakdown of the orbital septum which allows the normal orbital fat tissue that surrounds and cushions your eyeball to "pooch" forward.

As you know, there are tons of creams and lotions for the ladies to use for this issue. Why are there so many different ones? Because none of them work :-)

With age the thin, tough membrane (orbital septum) that keeps the normal fat pad in place behind your eye becomes weak and tears. When this happens you start to notice the swelling, or bags, under your eyes. It is nothing to worry about.

The only way to treat this problem is with surgery, called a blepharoplasty. Many times it can be done in a procedure room in the ophthalmologist’s office.

Here is a good webpage that discusses this surgery:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blepharoplasty

Is there anything else you would like to discuss at this point or have all your questions been answered to your satisfaction?

It's safe for you to press the positive feedback button now if you so desire. And, never fear, even after you press that button I don't go up in a puff of smoke -- I'll still be right here to continue helping you, but, as I do work for tips, I want to make sure you are happy before rating me.

Wow! That was not very nice....poor feedback for telling you the truth.

I am sorry to see that you have given me a poor rating for the assistance I have provided. Ratings do not apply to system malfunctions...only to the quality of the expert.

I would ask that you give me a chance to provide you with further data so that you have the information you need to address your issue.I would appreciate a good or excellent rating and will work hard to obtain it if given the chance.Thank you.

I realize that this was not the answer you were hoping to hear but it would be unfair to you and unprofessional of me were I provide you with anything less than truthful and honest information.

Surely, you prefer that I tell the truth rather than what you wish to hear. Because it reflects very poorly on me unless you press one of the top three feedback choices, keep this in mind when rating my answer and please do not punish me for being honest. I understand that this may not be easy to hear, and I empathize.

Even though my answer was not quite what you were hoping for, please understand that my priority was to provide you with the most honest information. With that in consideration, I hope that you found my answer useful. Please click the excellent feedback button so that I can receive credit for my efforts.

That is an excellent question. In the picture with the cute dog I can not enlarge it to see you eyes....but, you are right. Usually, the orbital septum would not tear under both eyes that quickly. But, since I can't see our face up close in this picture I can't tell if it was already starting.

However, to address your primary concern: The bags that you have under your eyes now is not related in anyway what-so-ever with the status of your shut, the amount of fluid in your brain or the pressure inside your head.

I hope this is helpful and you will change your rating to a positive one so as not to destroy my online ratings.

I hope this information was helpful for you. But I do work for tips so I want to make sure you are happy with me before rating me. If you have another question on this or a related issue feel free to fire away. You may also receive an email survey after our chat, if you don’t feel that I have earned a “10” rating in all areas, please let me know what I can do to meet your expectations.

I will tell you that...the things you have to go through to be an Expert are quite rigorous.

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